Years of below normal precipitation has prolonged the drought across western Colorado.
Every event with a place to put it; 21 filed by county or forecast zone are drawn at its center, in a lighter ring. Tap one for its entry below.
Deaths and injuries are direct and indirect together, as the offices filed them. Damage is property and crops in the dollars of the year, not adjusted for inflation, and only where an office estimated it.
The episode as NWS GJT wrote it up.
Years of below normal precipitation has prolonged the drought across western Colorado.
The local office's own words before the first event, as it sent them, from the Iowa Environmental Mesonet's archive of National Weather Service text.
NWS Grand Junction, CO wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Jun 30, 1:16 PM MST, 10 hours 44 minutes earlier.
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE GRAND JUNCTION CO 216 PM MDT SAT JUN 30 2007 .SHORT TERM (TONIGHT THROUGH MONDAY)... HIGH PRESSURE OVER THE AREA WILL CONTINUE TO DICTATE WEATHER ACROSS THE REGION IN THE NEAR TERM. STAGNANT DRY AIRMASS WILL RESPOND TO INCREASED 7H TEMPS (GENERALLY 18 TO 20 DEG C) WITH RECORD AND NEAR RECORD HIGH TEMPERATURES. MOISTURE ALONG THE EASTERN EDGE OF THE CONTINENTAL DIVIDE MAY SPARK A FEW HIGH BASED THUNDERSTORMS OVER THE HIGHER TERRAIN IN THE LATE AFTERNOON AND EVENING SUNDAY AND AGAIN MONDAY. .LONG TERM (MONDAY NIGHT THROUGH SATURDAY)... THE PREVIOUS FORECAST WAS IN EXCELLENT SHAPE...STAYING AHEAD OF GUIDANCE IN A HOT/DRY PERSISTENT PATTERN UNDER A 598DAM RIDGE. THE 12Z GFS HAS WEAKENED THE 4TH OF JULY FRONT RANGE COLD FRONT THAT WOULD HAVE HAD LITTLE EFFECT WEST OF THE CONTINENTAL DIVIDE ANYWAY. SO GUIDANCE TEMPS HAVE INCREASED TO NEAR OUR CURRENT FORECAST. RECORD HIGH TEMPS POSSIBLE WITH CURRENT GRAND JUNCTION RECORD MAXES OF 103/104. GFS CONTINUES TO SUGGEST THAT MID LEVEL MOISTURE COULD INCREASE AS EARLY AS THE 4TH. THIS WOULD INCREASE THE POTENTIAL FOR DRY INVERTED-V THUNDERSTORMS AND PERHAPS DROP AFTERNOON TEMPS A FEW DEGREES UNDER INCREASED CLOUDS. FOR THIS FORECAST WILL MENTION A SLIGHT CHANCE FOR SHOWERS IN THE CO MTNS STARTING ON THE 5TH BUT KEEP TEMPS NEAR RECORD LEVELS. && .AVIATION... VFR CONDITIONS WILL CONTINUE THROUGH THIS WEEKEND AS HIGH PRESSURE REMAINS ANCHORED OVER THE REGION. LOCAL WIND GUSTS OF 25 TO 30 MPH WILL OCCUR EACH AFTERNOON DUE TO STRONG SURFACE HEATING. ISOLATED THUNDERSTORM WIND GUSTS TO 40 MPH ARE ALSO POSSIBLE NEAR THE CONTINENTAL DIVIDE EACH AFTERNOON AND EARLY EVENING...MAINLY SOUTH OF ASPEN. && .FIRE WEATHER... NEOLA NORTH FIRE IN NORTHEAST UTAH INDICATOR OF THE CURRENT DANGEROUS FIRE POTENTIAL. STARTED BY A POWERLINE AT 9 AM SATURDAY...ESTIMATES ARE NEOLA NORTH HAS SPREAD TO OVER 14,000 ACRES AND IS RESPONSIBLE FOR THREE DEATHS. VISIBLE SATELLITE IMAGERY SHOWED SMOKE PLUME WAS UPSLOPE TO THE NORTH THIS MORNING...THEN SHOWED THE EFFECT OF THE WSW GRADIENT WIND IN THE AFTERNOON WHICH PUSHED THE PLUME TO THE NE OVER THE UINTA MTNS AND INTO WYOMING. NO CHANGES IN STORE THROUGH THE 4TH...AT LEAST. WEAK TO MODERATE SURFACE-BASED INVERSIONS WILL SET UP STARTING JUST BEFORE SUNSET THAT WILL THEN BREAK BETWEEN 9-11 AM. AFTERNOON MIXING WILL REACH 18,000FT MSL...MIXING DOWN LOCALIZED GUSTS OF 20-30MPH. AFTERNOON RH WILL DROP BELOW 15%...LESS THAN 10% IN THE VALLEYS...PRODUCING LOCALIZED CRITICAL FIRE WEATHER CONDITIONS. HAINES INDEX REMAINS PEGGED AT 6. IF MID-LEVEL MOISTURE DOES INCREASE AS FORECAST BY THE 5TH...THEN DRY-THUNDERSTORM IGNITION-SOURCE POTENTIAL WILL INCREASE. && .GJT WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES... .CO...NONE. .UT...NONE. SHORT TERM...NL LONG TERM...JOE+ELLEN FIRE WEATHER...JOE AVIATION...JDC
HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE GRAND JUNCTION CO 326 AM MDT SAT JUN 30 2007 COZ001>014-017>023-UTZ022>025-027>029-011000- ANIMAS RIVER BASIN-ARCHES/GRAND FLAT-CANYONLANDS/NATURAL BRIDGES- CENTRAL COLORADO RIVER BASIN- CENTRAL GUNNISON AND UNCOMPAHGRE RIVER BASIN- CENTRAL YAMPA RIVER BASIN-DEBEQUE TO SILT CORRIDOR- EASTERN UINTA BASIN-EASTERN UINTA MOUNTAINS- ELKHEAD AND PARK MOUNTAINS-FLAT TOPS- FOUR CORNERS/UPPER DOLORES RIVER- GORE AND ELK MOUNTAINS/CENTRAL MOUNTAINS-GRAND AND BATTLEMENT MESAS- GRAND VALLEY-LA SAL AND ABAJO MOUNTAINS-LOWER YAMPA RIVER BASIN- NORTHWEST SAN JUAN MOUNTAINS-PARADOX VALLEY/LOWER DOLORES RIVER- ROAN AND TAVAPUTS PLATEAUS-SAN JUAN RIVER BASIN-SOUTHEAST UTAH- SOUTHWEST SAN JUAN MOUNTAINS-TAVAPUTS PLATEAU- UNCOMPAHGRE PLATEAU AND DALLAS DIVIDE-UPPER GUNNISON RIVER VALLEY- UPPER YAMPA RIVER BASIN-WEST ELK AND SAWATCH MOUNTAINS- 326 AM MDT SAT JUN 30 2007 THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR EASTERN UTAH AND WESTERN COLORADO. .DAY ONE...TODAY AND TONIGHT ISOLATED THUNDERSTORMS WILL DEVELOP OVER THE MOUNTAINS OF WESTERN COLORADO...NEAR THE CONTINENTAL DIVIDE SOUTH OF ASPEN...LATE THIS AFTERNOON AND EARLY THIS EVENING. GUSTY WINDS TO 40 MPH WILL ACCOMPANY SOME OF THESE STORMS...ALONG WITH CLOUD TO GROUND LIGHTNING. HOT AND DRY CONDITIONS ALONG WITH GUSTY AFTERNOON WINDS MAY RESULT IN LOCALIZED CRITICAL FIRE WEATHER CONDITIONS. .DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...SUNDAY THROUGH FRIDAY VERY HOT AND DRY CONDITIONS WILL CONTINUE THROUGH THE MIDDLE OF NEXT WEEK. ISOLATED THUNDERSTORMS ARE POSSIBLE OVER THE COLORADO MOUNTAINS NEAR THE CONTINENTAL DIVIDE ON THURSDAY AND FRIDAY AFTERNOONS. .SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT... SPOTTER ACTIVATION IS NOT ANTICIPATED TODAY AND TONIGHT. CJC/EH
The national radar mosaic for the moment the first event began.
21 drought. Local standard time, as filed.
Moderate drought conditions continued under warm summertime temperatures.
Areas of abnormally dry conditions continued under warm summertime temperatures.
Abnormally dry to moderate drought conditions continued under hot summertime temperatures.
Abnormally dry to moderate drought conditions continued under warm summertime temperatures.
Abnormally dry to moderate drought conditions continued under hot summertime temperatures.
Abnormally dry conditions continued under warm summertime temperatures.
Abnormally dry conditions continued under warm summertime temperatures.
Severe drought conditions continued under hot summertime temperatures.
Areas of abnormally dry conditions continued under warm summertime temperatures.
Abnormally dry to moderate drought conditions persisted under warm summertime temperatures.
Moderate drought conditions persisted under hot summertime temperatures.
Moderate drought to severe drought conditions persisted under hot summertime temperatures.
Abnormally dry to moderate drought conditions persisted under warm summertime temperatures.
Moderate drought conditions persisted under hot summertime temperatures.
Moderate drought conditions persisted under warm summertime temperatures.
Abnormally dry to moderate drought conditions persisted under warm summertime temperatures.
Abnormally dry to moderate drought conditions persisted under warm summertime temperatures.
Moderate drought conditions persisted under warm summertime temperatures.
Areas of abnormally dry conditions persisted under warm summertime temperatures.
Abnormally dry conditions persisted under warm summertime temperatures.
Areas of abnormally dry conditions persisted under warm summertime temperatures.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
Every storm in Colorado in 2007Every state in 2007This day in weather historyWarnings in Colorado, July 2007
NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information, Storm Events Database, compiled from the National Weather Service’s monthly Storm Data. Complete through 2026-06; NCEI adds each month about 75 days after it ends and revises past years a few times a year. Rebuilt 2026-09-24. Each event’s entry at NCEI: 46471, 46472, 46473, 46474, 46475, 46476, 46477, 46478, 46479, 46490, 46491, 46492, 46493, 46494, 46495, 46496, 46497, 46498, 46499, 46500, 46501.